Following Hezbollah’s launch of aerial targets toward Israeli territory earlier on Sunday, the IDF conducted a precise strike on a Hezbollah command center in the Dahieh suburb of Beirut.
According to the IDF, Hezbollah terrorists used the command center to advance terrorist attacks against the citizens of the State of Israel and IDF soldiers operating in southern Lebanon. The strike eliminated the commander of Hezbollah’s communications unit.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a joint statement that "In response to continued Hezbollah attacks on Israel’s territory, including a terror drone strike this morning, Prime Minister Netanyahu and Defense Minister Katz authorized an IDF surgical strike on a Hezbollah terrorist target in the Dahieh quarter of Beirut. Israel will not tolerate firing at its territory."
The Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps warned in a statement that “the crimes of the Zionist entity in Dahiyeh will not go unanswered."
Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf, who is the Islamic Republic's lead negotiator with the United States, commented on the strikes: "The Zionists' incursion into Dahieh has once again shown that America either lacks the will to fulfill its commitments or the ability to do so. By giving the green light to the regime, you cannot gain concessions. The game of bad cop and good cop is outdated."
"If you lack the will and ability to fulfill your commitments, speaking of continuing the path is not possible," he added.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry responded to Ghalibaf: "The Iranian regime, as always, is lying. Iran’s proxy, Hezbollah, is the one that attacked Israel again this morning, completely unprovoked."
The Ministry added that, "Hezbollah constantly fires at Israeli civilians. Even after the ceasefire, Hezbollah has not stopped targeting Israelis. It was Hezbollah that launched an unprovoked attack on Israel in March, acting under the orders of its Iranian masters. Israel will not tolerate firing at its territory."
The strikes come just hours before the US and Iran, according to President Donald Trump, were set to sign an agreement to end hostilities, reopen the Strait of Hormuz, and begin nuclear negotiations.
The strike followed the infiltration of three unmanned aerial vehicles launched from Lebanon into Israeli airspace during the morning hours. Two drones exploded in the Shlomi area of the western Galilee, while a third later exploded in a military zone inside Israel.
The IDF said all of the aerial targets fell in military areas near the border and not within civilian communities. The military added that there were no casualties and that the circumstances of the incidents are under investigation.
Cabinet member and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich responded to the incident by calling for a strong Israeli response.
"The fire toward northern communities is a test of the Dahieh equation that the Prime Minister announced," Smotrich said. "I call on him to implement it with determination and force and bring down more buildings in Dahieh today. We are in critical days that will shape the region for many years. We promised security to the residents of the north, and we must deliver."
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir said he would present his position during discussions with Prime Minister Netanyahu and call for a harsh response to any violation by Hezbollah.
"For every drone, a missile. For every violation, fire. For every UAV, Dahieh should shake. For every hair on the head of an IDF soldier, a thousand Hezbollah terrorists. Terror is not contained - it is defeated," Ben Gvir said.
Last week, after a Hezbollah attack on Israeli territory, the IDF carried out a strike in Beirut, a move that was followed by an Iranian attack involving approximately 23 missiles launched at Israel and two waves of Israeli Air Force strikes in Iran.
Defense Minister Katz stated last week that "every attack on northern communities will lead to a strike in Dahieh," the Beirut neighborhood regarded as Hezbollah's main stronghold in Lebanon.